Tell me about your stories and the monsters they feature!My stories have wandered all over the place, but I’ve discussed all kinds of tentacular creatures (including one that was really more of a machine), shifters, strange vampiric women who like to turn their victims into latex-wrapped creatures… I’d say my only real flaw is not having been able to sit down and really develop a long story line, just a few trilogies, like my three stories (so far!) with Catrine and the “Purloined Princess” set. Oh well! You have to follow your muse, I suppose.
That said, I’d say Lieselotte – the lady vampire I mentioned above – is my most original concept. I’ve wanted to do more with her…

What do you like to call your category? “Monster erotica”, “beast porn”, something else?I’d say “monster erotica” is a good term – it’s helpful to the reader, and it’s rather alluring too. After all, “monster” doesn’t have to mean something gross… Frankenstein’s creation in the original novel was quite the romantic hero, in his way.

If there was no such category as monster erotica, what would you call your work?I think I’d say erotic fantasy. Which can include science fiction, of course; sci-fi’s really just fantasy with (some of the time) more strictly defined rules. It also covers even my more “mundane” stories nicely- they’re erotic fantasies too, after all.

Why do you write and read monster erotica? What’s the appeal?Mm. Well, I write it because it thrills me. There’s something about the strange and the monstrous that is attractive on some level… I think whenever we watch horror movies, part of us is always tempted by the monster. Even when it’s something utterly inhuman, there’s always a certain pathos that I think attracts us. And, of course, fear and arousal often seem to go hand in hand.

I read monster erotica for mostly the same reasons *grin*.

Favorite sexy beast?I haven’t had the chance to write a story about them… but I’d have to say that the octopus would be the winner. I’m sure you’ve seen those old Japanese woodcut paintings? The obvious tension in the captive woman’s body, as well as those strangely expressive eyes and those glistening limbs…

What else do you write?Mostly erotica! I have a few projects – mostly concepts – for more conventional novels… but I’m not sure how far they’ll end up going. Even so, I’ve written a lot of wide-ranging stories; I did a master collection, just for fun, and I’ve written a total of thirty-five on oh, all sorts of topics.

Kiss/kill/marry: Bigfoot, a Grey alien, the Loch Ness MonsterWhat an excellent question. This one has taken me a while.

But I think I’d kiss Bigfoot, in honor of dear Ms. Wade’s work, and also just to confirm to myself that he’s real. Besides which, I’d love to whisper to him just how popular he’d become – and I admit that he’d be someone that might be fun to do a bit more than kiss.

The Loch Ness Monster, I’m afraid I’d have to kill. I don’t really have any animosity to poor Nessie, but I also admit that he’s been sneaking around the old Loch for quite a long time. I’d arrange it, I think, so that we’d fake his death and return him to the sea, where he could swim happily in waters that weren’t so peaty, and find his own love. Or, at least, travel to Iceland and marry Bjork.

And I’d marry the grey. I know that’s a little unusual, but I feel that we should look at what they’re doing. They like to hunt beef – certainly. They’re rather promiscuous and assertive… certainly. But they’re also clearly interested in families, and in the inner beauties of those who they find. And I can forgive quite a few crop circles and battles with Will Smith if it means I’ll get to make love in a spaceship… Just don’t forget the probe, darling!

What’s the best writing advice you ever heard?“If you do it a hundred times, you’ll find it hard. [No snickering from the peanut gallery…] If you do it a thousand times, you’ll find it easy. And if you do it ten thousand times, you’ll find it’s effortless.”

Less pithily: Write every day. Even if it’s just a little bit, even if it’s in stories you’ll never share. (I have perhaps fifteen stories that I stopped partway through, but every single one was fun to write and a creative inspiration.)

Anything else you’d like to say?I want to give my heartfelt thanks to everyone who’s read my stories. Whatever you thought of them – even if you returned them later – it is a profoundly humbling thing to know that someone has chosen you, yes YOU, to be the one they let into their heart (and other private parts). I couldn’t do it – if you’ll forgive the phrasing – without you.

About the Author

Dana Bowman is a crafty creatrix of darkly delightful tales of thrilling, sometimes twisted, often transgressive erotica. Follow her on Twitter at @TheDanaBowman and examine her offerings at http://www.amazon.com/Dana-Bowman/e/B009639G02/